The next day, at the company's promotion banquet, Beatrice walked onto the stage in a custom gown Frederick had given her.

At the same time, the giant screen behind lit up with wedding photos of her and Frederick.

The employees below instantly erupted, applauding and offering their congratulations.

Frederick held Beatrice's hand and slowly stepped forward. "I now announce that Beatrice Sutton is officially the department manager."

Frederick intertwined his fingers with hers, raising them above their heads. The dazzling rings gleamed even brighter under the flashing lights.

"There is another piece of good news. Beatrice and I are getting married," he added.

The crowd below began cheering loudly.

"No wonder Mr. Scott waited until now to announce the promotion. Turns out he wanted to give us double the good news."

"Mr. Scott and Beatrice are such a perfect match, unlike certain people who only know how to cling to him."

It didn't take much thought to know that the "certain people" they were talking about was me.

Sitting in the front row, I could feel my colleagues' scornful glances. Beatrice's smug expression on stage was also impossible to miss.

I clapped without expression and sent out my resignation letter.

After the banquet ended, I headed to the stairwell. I found an unmarked number at the bottom of my contact list and dialed it.

"I've thought through what you said last time. I'll bring the core technology with me," I said.

The moment I hung up, a tall figure pulled me into his arms.

Frederick brushed his lips against my cheek. I tried to pull away, but his grip only tightened.

"Ellie, I know you're upset, but I hope you can understand me."

His voice came from above my head. "Beatrice's younger brother had always wanted me to marry her. I had no choice but to go along with it. You know the one I truly love has always been you."

Seeing that I didn't respond, Frederick continued, "I'll take you to the beach tomorrow and make it up to you properly."

It didn't really matter whether we went to the beach or not. I had three days before my flight, and I wanted to use this time to say a proper goodbye to the past.

…

The next morning, Frederick came to pick me up. As I opened the passenger door, Beatrice smiled at me from inside. "Ellie, Mr. Scott saved the passenger seat for me because he was worried that I might get carsick. You don't mind, do you?"

I replied, "Of course not. It's only right for you to take the passenger seat since your body is weak."

As soon as I finished speaking, I sensibly opened the back door.

On the way, Frederick made sure to explain himself to me. "Ellie, Beatrice has never been to the beach since she was a child. I thought this would be the perfect chance to show her."

I simply nodded without a word.

Through the rearview mirror, I saw Frederick's brow furrow, his fingers whitening slightly as he gripped the steering wheel.

"Aren't you angry?" Frederick asked with confusion in his voice.

"I know you're doing all this for her brother. Why would I be angry about that?" I replied.

Even though a trace of unease lingered in Frederick's heart, he didn't ask any more questions and kept driving.

When we arrived at the beach, Beatrice claimed that her heels made it difficult to walk, so she clung to Frederick at every step. The two of them chatted and laughed, completely leaving me out of the moment.

Frederick offered to take pictures of me using my own phone. Just as he pressed the shutter button, a notification about my plane ticket suddenly popped up on the screen. The moment he saw it, his expression darkened.

He pointed at the notification on my phone and demanded, "Ellie, what's this plane ticket about? Are you leaving the country?"

"It's just a short trip to clear my head. It's nothing serious," I said.

Frederick looked doubtful, and just as he was about to press further, Beatrice's sharp scream cut him off.

"Fred, a crab caught my hand. It hurts so badly!"

After a brief hesitation, Frederick returned my phone and went over to check on Beatrice's hand.

The trip to the beach was utterly dull, and the two of them treated me like I didn't even exist.

Still, that suited me just fine. With no one to bother me, I could enjoy a brief moment of peace by the beach on my own.

After the vacation, I returned to the office only to find the items on my desk replaced with Beatrice's. My work files had been packed up and tossed aside.

I knew for sure that Frederick did this.

Sure enough, before I had the chance to confront him, a message from him popped up on my phone. "Beatrice was just promoted to department manager, and she needs a new office. Your spot has the best light, so let her have it."

I replied, "Got it."

Then I silently gathered my files.

At the same time, Frederick stared at my message, lost in thought.

In the past, I would definitely throw a fit. However, after observing me for the past few days, he noticed that my reaction was unusually calm. A strange sense of unease crept into his heart.

"Aren't you angry?" he asked.

"You're looking after Beatrice because of her sick brother. Why would I be mad?" I replied.

Frederick still looked doubtful. He tried to comfort me and said, "Her brother only has a few months left. Just wait for me. I'll give you a grand wedding."

However, what Frederick didn't realize was that I no longer cared.

Tomorrow, I would leave him for good.

Beatrice walked over to my desk with a mocking smile. "So what if you're Mr. Scott's fiancee? I'm still the one he loves the most. Not only your job and your man—I'm going to take everything that belongs to you."

I ignored her shameless words.

Suddenly, something occurred to me, and I turned to her. "The proposal I drafted isn't complete. Let me finish it before I leave," I said.

I wasn't doing it for her. I was doing it for the company. If the proposal went wrong, it could cause massive losses and might even lead the company to bankruptcy.

Beatrice might deserve the fall, but I couldn't stand to watch the company I'd worked so hard to build collapse in her hands.

Beatrice sneered. "Don't think that I don't know what you're planning. You want to tamper with my proposal, but I'm not falling for it."

I sighed. Since Beatrice refused to hand it over, I had no reason to humiliate myself further. It was just a pity for the company Frederick and I had built together.

Over the years, I had personally handled every little matter in the company, yet Frederick had taken my efforts for granted. He had never truly known how to run the company.

My resignation letter had been sitting in his inbox for days. If he had cared even a little about the company, he would have noticed it.

However, he never did.

Beatrice's flawed proposal was slowly taking shape, and the company's life had begun its countdown.

The next day, I boarded a flight overseas, bidding farewell to the city I had lived in for so many years.

Meanwhile, Frederick opened his computer and saw a resignation notice. The moment he saw my name, his chest tightened with a jolt. He remembered the plane ticket notification he had seen on my phone days earlier, and his blood ran cold.

Frederick quickly pulled out his phone and dialed my number, only to hear the automated tone telling him that the phone had been shut off.

His heart sank completely. The glass in his hand slipped to the floor, shattering with a loud crash.